Are The Navigators affiliated with a specific church? |
No, The Navigators is an inter-denominational ministry, meaning we serve students from all denominational backgrounds. We do not promote the ministry of any particular local church, though we do encourage our students to participate in a local church where the Scriptures are taught and the sacraments administered.
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I’ve never heard of The Navigators before. Are they a cult? |
No, The Navigators is a well-established and well-respected international ministry whose principle aim is to help people know Christ. Every cult in existence denies one or more historically accepted Christian doctrine (like the divinity of Christ, the Trinity, or salvation by grace). The Navigators explicitly affirms all these teaching in their Statement of Faith. Cults attract and retain followers with heavy-handed social pressure and psychological manipulation, often coupled with allegiance to some human authority figure who has the power to dictate doctrinal or moral norms. The Navigators bases its ministry and teaching on the authority of Scripture alone, and encourages members to think, speak, and live openly before God and all people.
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Why are you called "The Navigators?" |
The ministry began over seventy-five years ago as an outreach to sailors in the San Diego area. “The Navigators” seemed like a catchy enough name for that kind of outreach, and it still says a lot about what we do on campuses and in communities. We help people find a route into relationship with God through Christ and encourage them to stay that path throughout life.
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What makes The Navigators distinct? |
We place a particular emphasis on person-to-person ministry. Jesus commissioned His church to “go into all the nations and make disciples … teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19 NIV). It’s hard to make disciples in large groups. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to learning all that Jesus commanded. So, The Navigators helps individuals grow as Jesus’ disciples and encourages them to keep passing on to others the things they’re learning.
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Why are there so many Christian ministries on campus? Do you get along? |
Yeah, we get that a lot. There are multiple Christian ministries to choose from probably for the same reason there are so many brands of bottled water. We live in a culture that values having lots of options. But unlike all those bottled water companies, Christian ministries don't view each other as competitors. We don't try to stealthily steal students from each other or plot hostile takeovers. On the contrary, we get along quite well and do our best to join forces in advancing the Gospel on campuses. In fact, leaders from many campus ministry organizations (Navigators included) met in October 2011 and agreed to be unified in our mission. Read what we agreed to here.
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